Mary Grace Art

Mary Grace – a native New Orleanian – was born August 14, 1992, and at five years old was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. Over the past two decades, she has reinvented herself through art. From her humble beginnings of painting flowers on a grand scale to her modern vision of life, Mary Grace’s art displays both a constant reminder of someone living with cystic fibrosis, and a vibrant perspective on the world. She attributes this vibrancy to her loving family and friends, and lively New Orleans.

In 2000, her younger sister was born and inspired Mary Grace to create even more vivid art, and eventually portraiture. With her first portrait in 2010, the artist discovered a talent within herself that she had not noticed before: the ability to convey emotion through painting. She then realized that through art, she could evoke emotion not only within herself, but also within others. Instead of producing art just for her own happiness, Mary Grace began creating artwork for the joy of others. In addition, her art began serving the purpose of promoting awareness for a very significant cause: cystic fibrosis.

Hence, Mary Grace’s very first graphic series emerged. She named it “sixty-five roses” in honor of the story of a young child with the disease, who could not pronounce “cystic fibrosis” correctly; instead the child called it “sixty-five roses.” After graduating from the University of New Orleans in May of 2014, Mary Grace had to be hospitalized due to a severe infection in both her lungs and sinuses. During her hospitalization, the overwhelming abundance of medical supplies and medication inspired her to create art with a darker perspective. She found that the combination of medical supplies and aesthetics revealed disturbing interpretations of the hospital-patient experience. Mary Grace wanted to admit that living with cystic fibrosis is extremely difficult, even though it forces a positive outlook on life.